Shields leads Rays past Yankees, tightens AL East

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – James Shields pitched eight strong innings to outlast CC Sabathia and light-hitting Chris Gimenez drove in two runs Monday, helping the Tampa Bay Rays beat the New York Yankees 4-3 and further tighten the AL East race.

The Yankees, who led by 10 games earlier this season, had their lead cut to one game over Baltimore, which beat Toronto 4-0. The Rays moved within 2 1-2 games of New York.

Shields (13-8) and the Rays ruined the return of Alex Rodriguez. The slugger went 1 for 4 with a strikeout in his first game after being sidelined six weeks with a broken left hand.

Gimenez snapped a 3-all tie in the eighth with a two-out grounder that just made it to the outfield for a single off David Robertson (1-5).